Thyssenkrupp Steel has concluded a comprehensive restructuring agreement with Germany’s industrial union IG Metall under the initiative titled “Steel Realignment.” The agreement, reached after extensive negotiations, aims to ensure the company’s long-term independence and economic competitiveness through a series of strategic measures involving production adjustments, workforce optimization, and targeted investments.
As part of the production realignment, the company will reduce its steel output capacity to a targeted annual shipping volume of 8.7 to 9 mln tons. This includes the planned shutdown of blast furnace 9 at the beginning of the next financial year. Blast furnace 8 will also be decommissioned once the new direct reduction plant becomes operational. Additionally, Thyssenkrupp will close Hot Strip Mill 3 at its Bochum site in early 2026 and shut down the electrical steel production facility on Castroper Strasse by the end of fiscal year 2027/28. The Eichen plant, however, will remain operational, with optimization strategies currently under review for the Siegerland location. Investments are also planned to upgrade a continuous casting line to secure narrow slab supply for the Hohenlimburg site, along with further modernization of electrical steel operations.
These production network changes will be accompanied by a workforce reduction of approximately 1,600 employees by the end of the 2028/29 financial year. In parallel, additional efficiency measures will affect around 3,700 positions by the end of 2027/28, as part of efforts to streamline operations and create a leaner organization. Furthermore, the agreement includes a process to evaluate and implement “make-or-buy” strategies, potentially outsourcing up to 4,000 roles by the end of 2029/30.
The restructuring also involves significant personnel cost-saving measures. These include the cancellation of collectively agreed special payments, reductions in holiday and Christmas bonuses, shorter working hours, from 34 to 32.5 hours per week for unionized employees, and from 41 to 39 hours for non-pay-scale staff, as well as the elimination of six paid leave days for certain employees (with an optional buy-back), reductions in anniversary bonuses, and a 50pct cut in on-call allowances.
